joining us inside the war room 13 days until election. employees cast that ballot have a great night, and we'll see you here tomorrow. ♪ iewpoint" with eliot spitzer is next. see you tomorrow. [ ♪ theme music ♪ ] >> eliot: good evening i'm eliot spitzer and this "viewpoint." what is it that some republicans senate candidates don't understand about abortion and rape? plenty. as in ugly new battlefield on the war on women showed last night, and the time could not be worse for mitt romney. comments when an abortion appropriate came into a debate for indiana candidate for senate richard mourdock against democrat joe donnelly. they both say they're pro-life.

richard mourdock said this. >> the i think even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that is something that god intended to happen. >> eliot: some republicans backed off michigan quickly. mike pens has urged richard mourdock to apologize. and others say quote richard mourdock's comments damage all republicans especially romney as the fight for the women's vote intensifies. this could be a defining moment for romney and he should immediately denounce both murdoch and the comment. with the policy poll showing the lead to romney. with the race neck and neck, romney does not need the gender gap to come to the fore . andrea saul would only say governor romney disagrees with richard mourdock's comments, and they do not reflect his views.

romney continued airing this richard mourdock endorsement the only ad he has released backing a senate candidate. >> i'm backing richard mourdock as senator. richard will be the 51st vote to repeal and replace government-run healthcare. he'll stop the reid-pelosi agenda. >> eliot: he told reporters, i quote, this is a reminder that a republican congress working with a republican president mitt romney would feel that women should not be able to make choices about their own healthcare. as for richard mourdock, he tried apologizing but only confusing people on where he stood. >> i did not intend that god pushes people to rape or supports evil in any way. i believe it's wrong when people want to take what i said and twist it. but if any way people came away with the wrong meaning for that i do apologize.

>> eliot: murdoch's opponent congress man donnelly wanted more. >> as someone running for the united states senate it is hurtful to women to survivors of rape, and to their families to have said this. >> eliot: it could be hurtful for richard mourdock's chances too, according to the poll, murk dock is leading donnelly by five points. maybe he should have taken a listen from missouri congressman todd akin. he was expected to beat claire mccaskill handily but that's before he talked about the rape and the magical powers of a woman's body to shut down. now there is a six-point lead. the only surprise there is it isn't bigger. here to discuss the war on women congresswoman jacki speier

fromcal. beyond shock. how do you react to this craziness? >> i don't believe it. most women think it's a joke when they hear it. how are those words coming out of who we think must be intelligent people. they're running for congress, running for presidency. yet they are saying it, and i do think they believe it. they do not want to allow abortions for women who have been victims of rape. >> eliot: i think you are right this is why it makes it so much more important where words have been misspoken and not meant. they do mean it. the republican platform is crazy, not as crazy as this statement but they're crazy. there are 40 members of congress who subscribe to a view like this. there is insane stuff. >> well, you know, mitt romney has said he would support a personhood amendment to presume that at conception life that prevents abortion for women.

>> eliot: it would criminalize it. >> it would but there are more than 1.3 rapes a year in this countries and anywhere from 30,000 to 40,000 pregnancy that is result from that. are we going to say sorry you went through this horrible situation but you have to have this baby. >> eliot: there are so many layers to this, and it's a throwback to a totally different era. mitt romney still has not honest from the republican public public--where is the republican leadership? >> he would want to see roe versus wade reversed. he wants to appoint judge who is reflect that opinion. he wants to get rid of funding for planned parenthood. he has bought into the whole deal from the republican perspective. and it would really take us back in time to--1972 when women

didn't have that right. interestingly enough you know back then only a third of the working force was female. that's not the case today. >> eliot: this is--as the president said in the debate a few days ago this is a social agenda from an entirely different era of american society. yet, mitt romney doesn't seem to be paying yet at least a huge political price for this. >> he hasn't, and i think it's our responsibility to make it clear to the women of this country that you are about to lose some very, very important rights. that no longer is it a decision about your reproductive healthcare going to be between you and your physician. the government is moving in, and they're going to be telling you what you can and cannot do. >> eliot: are republican women pushing back? i got to believe, and i may be fundamentally wrong about this, but i got to believe that the republican women and they're a big demographic they may be saying this is a not a party that i want to be a part of.

>> i don't think so. not one republican woman in congress has spoken up. not one. >> eliot: is that right? >> not one. >> eliot: that is an amazing statistic. >> for 55 sometimes on--times on the house floor the republican majority has put up bills to undermine women's reproductive health discriminate in terms of healthcare and restrict abortion. that's one a week since they've been in power. >> eliot: where is the ideology of a republican party that talks about a government that is non-invasive in our lives? why do non-invasive apply to wall street fraud but not the health and reproductive rights of a woman? that inconsistency always bothers me. it does not seem to resonate. >> get government out of our business except when it comes to women and their bodies. >> eliot: will mitt romney pay a price? will the gender gap that had been yawning sort of outcome

determinative in the presidential race then disappear. will it reemerge because of this? >> i sure hope so. i really want to wake up american women and say there is a lot at stake here. it's not going to start with the supreme court justice. it will move to every imaginable part of women's healthcare. >> eliot: right. do you think when you look at the supreme court, for some of us, i understand as a lawyer i'm in a tiny sub group but i care so deeply about that. that alone would make me vote for president obama. do you think chief justice roberts or alito do they agree with the desire to overturn roe v. wade and let states enact crazy laws that it would be pushing? >> i don't know. i haven't studied what their views are but i can't imagine they wouldn't be. they weren't selected by president bush because they were pro-choice, that's for sure. >> eliot: you said not one republican woman has stood up.

when you talk with them one-on-one, do they display discomfort? not to raise these hard issues and to push people, do you ever say to this, please, let's make this a bipartisan effort? let's push against this? >> they have been silent. they have not engaged in this issue at all. when you think about planned parenthood, the money we provide to planned parenthood, 97% of it goes to provide breast cancer screening. why wouldn't you want pro women or college women to access those kinds of screenings, yet they wouldn't lift a finger to protect it. >> it is an insane warped view of the world that is so troubling that i fear there politics has done to an unfortunate direction. >> especially when you remember that nixon signed the funding for contraceptive care at planned parenthooded back-- >> eliot: and the clean air act the clean water act the epa

incredibly liberal president despite everything else. jacki speier, thank you for joining us on the show. i'm joined by terry o'neil, president of the national organization for women. thank you for joining us. >> eliot, it's great to talk to you. >> eliot: so now how do you lead the crusade. you've been unshackled, as it were, now you're ability to go out and say look who they are. how do you lead that effort so that in the next couple of weeks people can rip the mask and veneer off of mitt romney. >> that's what we've been doing for months, making the case and getting the word out to women for what is at stake for women in this election. i think--i think voters very understandably have a hard time wrapping their brain around the real danger that is presented to women by mitt romney, todd akin, richard mourdock, and paul ryan.

i am met very often with disbelief. no those men are not really trying to redefine rape to be forcible. yes, they are. no, says voters, they're not really trying to stop rape victory from stopping pregnancies. pregnancies inmany pregnancies in this country are caused by rapes. and 17 states preserve father's rights not only would rape survivors be forced to carry a pregnancy to term, but the rapist himself may have legal right to have access to that victim and to the child produced by the rape. it's absolutely outrageous. i think it is so outrageous, eliot, that people have a hard time believing it. but the reality is what it is. mitt romney is right in the

thick of this deeply misogenistc policy. >> eliot: i remember when i first heard it several months ago i was shocked. i have lived to a certain extent in the political world i think that number has to be expressed and explained at a broader level. 32,000 pregnancies from rape every year makes this issue very powerful and pointed. i hope that gets out there and is discussed. it was shocking to me. >> it really is, and it's an indication of the level of violence against women generally. we have a wonderful violence against women act, and it has dramatically reduced the incidents of violence and sexual assault, but it has no way eliminated it, and women remain vulnerable to sexual assault. as we know the fbi defines rape as penetration however slight without consent. it's all about consent.

that's the right way to understand it. not the way that todd akin and paul ryan want to understand it as it's some how forcible. i think that these men not understanding that is probably what makes them so incredibly dangerous. they refuse to acknowledge the full humanity of women when they refuse to even try a little bit to step inside the shoes of a woman who has experienced sexual assault. by the way people who think mitt romney is some how backing away from richard mourdock's statement, i want to make it very clear to your viewers, he is not backing away. he says a lot of things, but when he's unmarked, when he doesn't know the cameras are rolling, for instance, years ago he tried to bully a woman who was in his congregation in the mormon church who's blood clots were making her pregnancy life-threatening and she had permission from the hierarchy to

abort that baby. he went to her and said why should you get off easy. her father was so angry that he kicked mr. romney out of his house and said don't you ever do that again. but this is the mitt romney who supports richard mourdock who believes the rape victim should be forced to bear a pregnancy forced by rape. >> eliot: should he not only pull the endorsement it seems to me he should--either you subscribe to what richard mourdock said, you can't have it both ways. hopefully the pressure will build on romney and unmask him because he has done a great job of being a mist to what his core positions are. >> my organization and my partners throughout the women's

movement we're doing everything we can to get the story out and get the word out of who mitt romney really is, and the policieses that he really will impose on us. i'm hopeful. i think women who look at this kind of thing will remember, their moms will talk to them and tell them the stories about the way it was in the 1950s and 60s. we are not going back there and we will, in fact defeat these men. >> eliot: congresswoman jacki speier said something remarkable not republican woman elected to congress has stood up to object to the war on women waged by the republican leadership. how can you use that as a galvanizing argument to say we're not partisan by nature, but my goodness, folks look at what is going on here. this is a party that simply doesn't get it. >> absolutely. eliot, i fear for the republican party. my organization is nonpartisan. we support issues. we support women's rights no matter which party will support that. but the radical fringe has taken

control of the republican party. they are chasing out good women like olympia snowe lisa markowsky. they have chased out moderates like richard lugar in indiana. they--it is not surprising to me that republican women are completely under the thumb of this very male dominated radical fringe. i say radical fringe because those men don't represent the desires of most women in america or of most men in america. they really are fringe. they've got a ton of money from people like david and charles koch and grover norquist, and karl rove and his ability to reach out to huge funders. they are simply using their outside money to get political influence that in a democracy they should never have.

>> eliot: also what they've done is redefine what moderate means these days. unfortunately we're out of time. terry o'neil, thanks so much for your time tonight. >> thank you. >> eliot: a programming reminder, i'm heading out west in los angeles to appear on realtime with bill maher. that's friday at 10:00 p.m. eastern on hbo. i'll have my view on what mitt romney needs to say later on in the show. (vo) brought to you by courtyard. (vo) answer in a moment.

(vo) brought to you by courtyard. now find the most hard core driver in america. that guy, put him in it. what's this?

[ male announcer ] tell him he's about to find out. you're about to find out. [ male announcer ] test it. highlight the european chassis 6 speed manual, dual exhaust wide stance, clean lines have him floor it, spin it punch it, drift it put it through its paces is he happy? oh ya, he's happy! [ male announcer ] and that's how you test your car for fun. easy.

>> eliot: republicans love screaming that president obama some how won't let american companies pump oil. that is so blatantly false. that it brings us to the number of the day. one. that's where we're heading. the world as number one producer of oil. we've also passed russia to become the second- largest producer. we could surpass saudi arabia by 2020. in fact, the more production numbers you look at, the more ridiculous the republicans arguments become. the u.s. production of liquid hydrocarbons will probably end seven percent higher this year than last. the biggest gain in the single year since the truman administration. as for the price at the pump, republicans keep comparing gas prices now with the cost right after petroleum and everything else in the u.s. economy took a crash dive in 2008.

but in real numbers the average price is about the same as four years ago. we're having a massive surge in oil production and mitt romney thomas jefferson said that a successful democracy depended on an informed electorate. our country's future depends on you. to help you make informed decisions, watch current tv's politically direct lineup. only on current tv. take the time to learn about the issues. don't just vote, vote smart.

>> eliot: republican india indiana senate candidate michigan said even when life begins this a horrible situation of rape, it is something that god intended to happen, and re

reignited the war on women two weeks before election day dragging mitt romney rights back into the line of fire. let's go to the host of "the war room," governor jennifer granholm, is this crazy continuing to be crazy akin all over again? explain this. >> i wish i could explain it. i can't even put myself in his shoes. but i do know that his position, which is to say abortion should be illegal in all cases including rape or incest, the only exception he makes is for the life of the mother. that position is the same position as 40 house members. 40 g.o.p. house members. what is amazing to me, eliot is that this is not part of our regular conversation regarding how we're going to close this gender gap. most americans, men or women don't think that there should be a complete and total ban on abortion, even in the cases of rape or incest. that's an outlier position.

we've got candidates now in the u.s. senate from indiana missouri these house members who believe that. this is an opportunity certainly for the obama administration and the obama political team to say women, do you really want to have the ryan-romney ticket. by the way ryan is in the same place in the white house that would affirm essentially that kind of position, even though romney, of course, there should be an exception for at least rape and incest you are. >> eliot: that's his position as of 3:23 this afternoon but it could change by 8:00 tonight. >> exactly. >> eliot: the etch-a-sketch. before we get into the politics of this, at a larger level what is becoming clear to me is there is a strain of thinking in this nation. it's not just a few crazies on the fringe as much as we would like to think it is, who have this perspective. and some how the issue of choice has not continued to grow in terms of popular support for a woman's right to choose, but we're stuck in a rigid 50/50 and there is a significant block

that takes what we view as crazy positions. why have we reached this point of equilibrium and why are we not more successful in pushing a point of consensus. >> many people have not thought through to the logical end of what a position like todd akin or richard mourdock would be if you have no exceptions for rape or incest, what is the penalty for a woman who is raped who seeks an abortion? what is the penalty for a woman who is not raped and seeks for an abortion. if you go to states like missouri which had that personhood on the ballot if you have a fetus with the same rights as a person outside of the womb, what does that mean when there is an intentional termination of that now person's life? well, of course, you would be subject to murder charges and others. republicans say we don't mean

for it to be criminalize it. we go after the doctor. what are you going to do, put all these doctors in jail? it's an absurd conclusion. >> eliot: let's turn to the politics of this for a moment. what do you think the reaction was in the romney camp when this exploded as an issue. after spending the past two weeks becoming moderate mitt, he's now caught in this web. he's caught be twist and between. >> well, he is. on the very day that richard mourdock said this at the debate last night there is the one and only ad that mitt romney cut for any senate candidate has been for richard mourdock. that is now airing across indiana. the dnc has taken out an ad counter to that ad saying, look what mitt romney supports. politically there is an opportunity, certainly for the democrats.

but i do think the questions have to be asked. eliot, there is one other thing that is important in this, the other local question. if you have mitt romney's position and say he appoints justices who reverse roe versus wade and so you have got half of the states controlled by republican governors and republican house and senate members so abortion is made illegal in those states, even with exceptions for rape and incest, what does this mean? if you're a woman who gets raped, now you want to apply for the exception, do you have to go before a rape panel to prove that you were raped? do you have to prove you were a victim of incest? how long does that take? and by that point isn't it too late? the logical extension of these positions leads you to an i will illogical conclusion, one so extreme that this nation would not want to find itself in that place. >> eliot: it is extreme. it is crazy.

the map that we see so often these days, the red and the blue map on electoral votes if roe v. wade is overturned it would soon be impossible for a woman to get an abortion. that is going to fundamentally change civil rights. mitt romney wants to pretend no such thing will happen. this event will shatter the edifice that he's trying to create over the past week or two of the moderate mitt romney. i hate to say if it will help anybody because this is so crazy and abhor abhorrent but this is the outcome. governor jennifer g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g g

what we need are people prepared for the careers of our new economy. by 2025 we could have 20 million jobs without enough college graduates to fill them. that's why at devry university we're teaming up with companies like cisco to help make sure everyone is ready with the know-how we need for a new tomorrow. [ male announcer ] make sure america's ready. make sure you're ready. at devry.edu/knowhow. ♪ ♪

nah, he's probably got... [ dennis' voice ] allstate. they can bundle all your policies together. lot of paperwork. actually... [ dennis' voice ] an allstate agent can help do the switching and paperwork for you. well, it probably costs a lot. [ dennis' voice ] allstate can save you up to 30% more when you bundle. well, his dog's stupid. [ dennis' voice ] poodles are one of the world's smartest breeds. ♪ ♪ bundle and save with an allstate agent. are you in good hands?

[ ryan ] it doesn't get any better than endless shrimp at red lobster. you can mix and match all day! [ male announcer ] don't miss red lobster's endless shrimp just $14.99! try as much as you like, any way you like! like parmesan crusted shrimp. hurry in, offer ends soon! i'm ryan isabell and i see food differently. from silver screens... to flat screens... twizzlerize your entertainment everyday with twizzlers the twist you can't resist. >> eliot: coming up, how much will richard mourdock's comments hurt mitt romney among female voters, but first jimmy fallen on monday's debate and a musical

tribute to the great swing state of florida. when it doesn't fit anywhere else we put it in the viewfinder viewfinder. >> experts are saying that the election may be decide by one or two key swing states, including as usual, the state of florida ♪ florida ♪ it might be you ♪ can we trust you ♪ to make a stand ♪ you're a state ♪ full of great people ♪ we see you in the news" >> when mitt romney hired a pilot to fly a thermal ship that looks like a blimp the idea was to get publicity but not this kind. >> first the gone doe la struck and then it deflated. ♪ it's up to you ♪ florida ♪ ♪

>> a giant image of mitt romney's face hovering right above their household and then that imagine crash landed in the field behind me. ♪ you're a shining example ♪ for america ♪ florida ♪ we're counting on you ♪ >> thank you so much. >> i got to hand it to you, you were on your game tonight. >> you weren't so bad yourself. >> really? >> no, actually, you were pretty bad. [ ♪ music ♪ ] >> i got to say this campaign has been rough. i can't believe that in two weeks it will all be over. >> you mean your presidency? i zinged you. >> you zinged me.

>> i zinged you. >> i got zung. [ singing ] >> eliot: maybe that complaints it. will richard mourdock

get irresistibly clean and fresh carpets in your home with resolve deep clean powder. the moist powder removes three times more dirt than vacuuming alone while neutralizing odors for a clean you can see, smell and really enjoy. don't just vacuum clean. resolve clean. >> eliot: the hard truth of this election is that president obama will lose to mitt romney among male voters. which means to offset this he must-win the women vote by a larger margin, something that seemed to be a given two months ago. but in recent weeks romney was gaining on the president among women closing the margin to eight points. for more on how the mourdock comments will effect the gender

gap, i have margie and sam seder. has this erased a month of hard work by mitt romney to move to the center and become moderate? >> mitt romney has a variety of problems, and richard mourdock, the thing that makes it an immediate problem is you have the news of where is mitt romney on women's issues. he's inconsistent on his issues of abortion, and frequently on the wrong side of public opinion. he has been very out front for mourdock. he's the only candidate that he has cut an ad for. so it really puts--it puts the romney team off their message on the back foot, and it's a good day to remind voters around the country not only of the inside political back and forth of mourdock and endorsements and all that, but which party is

really agrees with rim, supports women. not interested in penalizing and punishing women who are rape victims. that's basic american values. >> eliot: sam, it seems to me that margie is right. he's losing ground. in the debate this week he basically conceded every foreign policy issue to president obama. merely to take those serves off issues off the table. this has got to be a huge blow to their game plan over the past two weeks. >> i think so. you don't want to spend your closing argument defending yourself for the one guy you cut an addan ad for. these are no longer the margins of the republican party. we have two senatorial candidates coming out with the same concept of rape. to put the question in some people's minds, mitt romney, forget about what his position is this week or this day on

these things. >> eliot: of course those change hour to hour. >> absolutely. but the point is it doesn't really matter. he's beholden to the same people who are basically nominating who we consider to be fringe people. this has become the mainstream republican thought. >> it's not just two senate candidates. it's congressmen from iowa who agreed with akin in the wake of his comments. legislatures around the country who say i have a spare tire in my trunk so women should have an abortion rider on their insurance in case they get raped. you have paul ryan who called rape a mode of conception. this is not just about the odd candidate here or there. but that's an important fabric that we need to get across. >> eliot: that's exactly right. then it does raise the question in my mind, who are the women

voting for mitt romney? are they not pro-choice, even if they're not as far a field of mainstream thought a comment for murder. they're not pro-choice, so it isn't so jarring, but believe romney on economic issues so they forgive him of his perspective. how many votes will be changed? sam, do we know who they are? >> i don't know that we know who they are. to think of this just in terms of pro-choice issues is too narrow. can you imagine if you said something like every time one of our military personnel get shot, that's god's intent. when 3,000 people die in a terrorist attack, that's god's intent. this shows a fundamental negation of women that goes beyond the question of abortion. i think there are still people out there who can split the

economy or what they perceive are their problems with president obama and these issues, but i think that number has got to get smaller. >> eliot: the horrendous nature of this statement raised much more fundamental questions about the way you view society civil rights. having said that, two weeks before the presidential election, i try to get my arms around who will have a vote change because of this or are we just two camps screaming at each other. margie, you talk about these walmart moms. moms who may be pro-choice or not, but the economic issues drive them, and it could be jarring enough that they lose that. >> i studied walmart moms extensively over the last two years and i've done focus groups with them, and you're right. whether you're talking about walmart moms or women generally they're going to be voting on which candidate can improve their personal situation. a lot of times when i hear moms hear

bickering about issues that's when they feel that candidates don't get their daily life. that's important to remember. moms have an opinion on these issues, and is it that they lean left? that's why you see mitt romney backing away or try to distance himself from mourdock so quickly. i think ultimately on the left and right the number one issue is the economy. the number one issue is which candidate can really speak to your daily struggle and understand your shared struggle. that's where some of these women's issues not just abortion, but equal pay healthcare education, really can shine a light on which candidate is really paying attention to working class people and middle class people. >> eliot: i want to do something that is hard, which is to post november 6th world and come back back, where does the republican party go on these social issues

post november 6th. is the tea party getting so strong within their camp that this pour portends of things to come. >> that ship has already sailed. to hear from mourdock and akin, five or six years ago simply that these guys are not savvy enough to blow the dog whistle. the republican party they move further to the right after the election. >> eliot: margie, real quick time runs short. will the republican party lose those walmart moms that you've studied so much if in fact what same sasssam says will happen. >> i think both candidates tried in the last debate tried to speak to the moms even in the context of foreign policy, really try to talk about it

through the lens of domestic policy, and they got that. the question is will the current climate in the next few days handle a romney team on the back foot or are we going to continue to have a conversation about the economy? >> eliot: marry omera host of "ring of fire," and the majority report, sam seder, thank thank you for your insights tonight. >> thank you. >> eliot: mitt romney abandodododododododododododododododododododododododododododo

plaque psoriasis. i decided enough is enough. ♪ ♪ [ spa lady ] i started enbrel. it's clinically proven to provide clearer skin. [ rv guy ] enbrel may not work for everyone -- and may not clear you completely but for many, it gets skin clearer fast, within 2 months, and keeps it clearer up to 9 months. [ male announcer ] because enbrel®, etanercept suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma other cancers,

and nervous system and blood disorders have occurred. before starting enbrel your doctor should test you for tuberculosis and discuss whether you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. don't start enbrel if you have an infection like the flu. tell your doctor if you're prone to infections, have cuts or sores have had hepatitis b have been treated for heart failure, or if, while on enbrel, you experience persistent fever, bruising, bleeding or paleness. if you've had enough, ask your dermatologist about enbrel.

>> eliot: mitt romney claims he disagrees with richard mourdock about pregnancy and rape. yet he appears in mourdock's ads. how does the etch-a-sketch candidate keep having it both ways. that's ahead on my view. and a programming note, this friday i'll be a guest on realtime with bill maher at 10:00 p.m.currenttv